Protesters shot and killed in Bahrain, report says
Posted Feb 18, 2011 6:17 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
MANAMA, Bahrain – Al Jazeera reported that soldiers have shot and killed protesters in the Gulf nation of Bahrain, Friday.
After night fall, there were reports of ammunition and tear gas being used against a crowd of up to 2,000 protesters, who are demanding the ousting of the king and his inner circle.
Hospital officials said at least 20 people were injured, some seriously. Doctors were overwhelmed with victims flooding the ER, the scene being described as a bloody war zone. People slipped in pools of blood as they ran for cover, as gunfire appeared to come from all directions.
“We have a lot of causalities whom their brain is just shattered. This is unbelievable,” one onlooker told Al Jazeera. “The hospital is full of causalities. All medical staff are running all over the place.”
Ambulance sirens were heard throughout central Manama a day after riot police swept through the protest encampment in Pearl Square, killing at least five people. At one point, the army was stopping ambulances from reaching the hospital, while doctors voluntarily wandered the streets, looking for victims.
An Associated Press cameraman saw army units shooting anti-aircraft weapons above the protesters in apparent warning shots and attempts to drive them back from security cordons about 200 metres from the square.
However, those affiliated with the royal family are painting a different picture. 680News contact a woman who works for the king, who said officials did not have a choice.
“The military and the police, they didn’t get to this step unless there was something really bad going on. To control the situation, I guess they have to attack,” she said. “The corrupted media are showing this. We’ve got free schools, free hospitals, and free education for everyone. What else can we do?”
She said the situation at the hospital is an exaggeration.
“I know a person that works at the same hospital and they say it’s very normal and everything is in order.”
The clash came hours after funeral mourners and worshipers at Friday prayers called for the toppling of the Western-allied monarchy in the tiny island nation that is home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, the centrepiece of the Pentagon’s efforts to confront Iranian military influence in the region.
The White House has expressed “strong displeasure” about the rising tensions in Bahrain.
The protests reflect a sharp escalation of the political uprising, which began with calls to weaken the Sunni monarchy’s power and address claims of discrimination against the Shiite majority.
Meanwhile, the U.N.’s top human rights official has condemned the violence used by security forces in Libya, Bahrain and Yemen against anti-government protesters.
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said security forces responded in an “illegal and excessively heavy-handed” manner against peaceful demonstrators.
In a statement issued by her office Friday, she condemned the use of live ammunition against protesters in Libya, the use of electric tasers and batons in Yemen, and the use of military-grade shotguns in Bahrain.
Pillay said “particularly egregious are the targeted attacks on journalists, lawyers, human rights defenders and even, in the case of Bahrain, doctors and medical personnel attending to injured protesters.”
Deadly confrontations between protesters and security forces were also reported in Libya and Yemen.
In Libya, security forces confronted protesters who are calling for the end of Moammar Gadhafi’s rule and have left at least 30 demonstrators dead after clashes security forces.
In Yemen, tens of thousands people protested, with reports that two people died in a grenade attack in the southern city of Taiz.
It was the eighth straight day of protests in Yemen inspired by uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia. Demonstrators in the Arab world’s poorest country are calling for the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has ruled the country for 32 years.
All of this comes as Egypt marks their one week anniversary of their political victory.
Meanwhile, Canadians are planning a rally in support of Libyan protesters over the weekend.
Rallies will be held in Ottawa and Vancouver on Saturday, while Toronto’s will take place at Yonge-Dundas Square Sunday afternoon starting at 12 p.m.
